Golf green slope indicator

ABSTRACT

A golf green slope indicator includes a circular base having a concave upper surface and a lower flat surface, where a slope from a middle of the concave upper surface increases nonlinearly to a periphery of the circular base. The indicator also includes an annular sidewall extending upwards from a periphery of the lower flat surface upwards beyond the concave upper surface, a transparent cover engaging an upper periphery surface of the annular sidewall, and a ball bearing unsecured and configured to roll along the concave upper surface.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates in general to a golf green slope indicator.

BACKGROUND

The game of golf includes eighteen greens from which a golfer putts his or her golf ball into a cup. Part of the intrigue of putting is the ability of the golfer to determine the slope and break of the golf green and to make the appropriate putt based on that determination. Often times a golfer will eye-ball the slope and break of the golf green by squatting down behind the golf ball and optically lining up the golf ball with the hole and holding a putter handle in a vertical orientation as a reference plane.

Some devices have been developed in order to assist the golfer in determining the slope and break of the golf green. This includes devices that are filled with water and use an air bubble to provide some guidance. Others have used a ball bearing in oil and the speed at which the ball travels in the oil correlates to a particular slope.

Although most devices may be capable of determining a general direction of slope, a shortcoming of the common devices is the lack of accuracy in determining the amount of slope. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a golf green slope indicator that is accurate and can assist the golfer in determining the slope and break of the golf green.

SUMMARY

In a particular illustrative embodiment, a golf green slope indicator is disclosed. The indicator includes a circular base having a concave upper surface and a lower flat surface, where a slope from a middle of the concave upper surface increases nonlinearly to a periphery of the circular base. The indicator also includes an annular sidewall extending upwards from a periphery of the lower flat surface upwards beyond the concave upper surface, a transparent cover engaging an upper periphery surface of the annular sidewall, and a ball bearing unsecured and configured to roll along the concave upper surface.

Other aspects, advantages, and features of the present disclosure will become apparent after review of the entire application, including the following sections: Brief Description of the Drawings, Detailed Description, and the Claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top view of a particular illustrative embodiment of a golf green slope indicator;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the golf green slope indicator taken in the direction of line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the golf green slope indicator taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a top perspective view of the golf green slope indicator.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to FIGS. 1-4, a golf green slope indicator 100 is illustrated. The indicator includes a circular base 102 having a concave upper surface 116 and a lower flat surface, where a slope from a middle of the concave upper surface 116 increases nonlinearly to a periphery of the circular base 102. The indicator 100 also includes a transparent cover 114 engaging an upper periphery surface of the annular sidewall of the base 102, and a ball bearing 104 unsecured and configured to roll along the concave upper surface 116. The cover 114 may be removable in order to change out the ball 104 to a different size or color of ball. The base 102 may also have a bottom surface that can be detached for customizing with logos or other artwork.

An alignment stripe 106 is disposed on the cover 114 and passes from an edge of the base 102 over a middle region of the concave upper surface 116 to an opposing edge of the base 102. The alignment stripe 106 is used as a guide for the golfer to place the indicator 100 in the correct orientation in order for the indicator 100 to provide accurate reading of the golf green 118. The alignment stripe 106 should be aligned to point towards, and align the indicator 100 to the direction of the cup. In another embodiment, the alignment stripe may be a cross-hairs or other geometric shape.

The concave upper surface 116 also includes indicia of a number of concentric rings 108 that are used to read the slope of a golf green 118. For example, the inner most ring may indicate a slope of 1%, the second inner most ring may indicate a slope of 1.5%, and so on. Accordingly, the golfer can read the slope of the golf green by which concentric ring 108 the ball bearing 104 is nearest. The rings 108 may not be evenly spaced around the center. For example in another embodiment, the smaller inner rings may be further apart from the large ones towards the outer edge. The concave upper surface 116 may be parabolic in shape and the slope of the concave upper surface can be determined using the length (l) the ball bearing 114 travels relative to the height (h) the ball bearing travels away from the middle region.

Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein. 

1. A golf green slope indicator, the indicator comprising: a circular base having a concave upper surface and a lower flat surface, wherein a slope from a middle region of the concave upper surface increases nonlinearly to a periphery of the circular base; an annular sidewall extending upwards from a periphery of the lower flat surface upwards beyond the concave upper surface; a transparent cover engaging an upper periphery surface of the annular sidewall; and a ball bearing unsecured and configured to roll along the concave upper surface.
 2. The golf green slope indicator of claim 1, further comprising an alignment stripe disposed on the transparent cover and passes from an edge of the circular base over a middle region of the concave upper surface to an opposing edge of the base.
 3. The golf green slope indicator of claim 2, wherein the alignment stripe is configured as a guide for a golfer to place the golf green slope indicator in an orientation to provide an accurate reading of a golf green slope.
 4. The golf green slope indicator of claim 2, wherein the concave upper surface further comprising indicia of a plurality of concentric rings configured to be used by a golfer to provide a visual indication of the slope of a golf green by which concentric ring the ball bearing is nearest when the golf green slope indicator is placed on the golf green.
 5. The golf green slope indicator of claim 4, wherein an inner most ring of the plurality of concentric rings indicates the slope of 1%, and the second inner most ring indicates a slope of 1.5%.
 6. The golf green slope of claim 4, wherein each concentric ring of the plurality of concentric rings are evenly spaced from each successive concentric ring.
 7. The golf green slope of claim 4, wherein a spacing between each concentric ring decreases from an innermost concentric ring to an outermost concentric ring.
 8. The golf green slope of claim 4, wherein the concave upper surface is parabolic in shape and the slope of the golf green is calculated using a length that the ball bearing travels relative to a height that the ball bearing travels away from the middle region of the concave upper surface.
 9. A golf green slope indicator, the indicator comprising: a circular base having a concave upper surface and a lower flat surface, the concave upper surface being parabolic in shape; an annular sidewall extending upwards from a periphery of the lower flat surface upwards beyond the concave upper surface; a transparent cover engaging an upper periphery surface of the annular sidewall; a ball bearing unsecured and configured to roll along the concave upper surface, the concave upper surface configured to determine a slope of a golf green by a length that the ball bearing travels relative to a height that the ball bearing travels away from the middle region of the concave upper surface; and an alignment stripe disposed on the transparent cover and passes from an edge of the circular base over a middle region of the concave upper surface to an opposing edge of the base, wherein the alignment stripe is configured as a guide for a golfer to place the golf green slope indicator in an orientation to provide an accurate reading of a direction of the slope of the golf green.
 10. The golf green slope of claim 9, wherein each concentric ring of the plurality of concentric rings are evenly spaced from each successive concentric ring. 